Telstra wins $90M networking deal with McDonald’s

Telstra and McDonald’s have struck a $90 million network transformation deal.

The new agreement will see more than 850 McDonald’s restaurants around Australia upgraded to a fibre network aimed at providing a “connected brand experience for its customers”.

Indeed, the deal is part of McDonald’s digital transformation agenda, and will deliver an umbrella fibre network for hundreds of its sites across the country with increased speed, security and reliability.

Under the terms of the deal, Telstra will not only rollout fibre to the 850 McDonald’s outlets, the telco will also provide a Telstra IP Telephony (TIPT) unified communications solution replacing traditional public switched telephone network (PSTN) to potentially enable video conferencing between restaurant operations and the fast food chain’s head office.

The deal will include connectivity via the Telstra Air Wi-Fi network, at restaurants around the country, to provide an improved in-store guest Wi-Fi experience for McDonald’s customers. This represents the biggest Telstra Air business deal to date.

The arrangement also sees 35 Ronald McDonald Houses around Australia connected to the new network, with Telstra Air provided to help families keep in touch while away from home.

“Our partnership with Telstra is one of the most transformative technology infrastructure projects ever undertaken by McDonald’s Australia, providing a world class network for now and a platform for innovation and growth in the future,” MacDonald’s Australia’s CIO, Scott Green, said.

“Our new network will provide more speed and reliability, creating better connectivity experiences for our customers and enhance key restaurant operations for our back office,” he said.

The rollout is expected to take 24 months with a significant number of restaurants operating on the new network within the next 12 months, Telstra said.

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